Birthday Memories
by Escachick357
Summary: Everybody has to have at least one memorable birthday in their lives, especially the Straw Hat Pirates. These are their stories. R&R if you want, but please don't flame.
1. Luffy: A Day of Questions

Birthday Memories

By: Escachick357

Ch.1- Luffy: A Day of Questions

Disclaimer: I don't own One Piece or its characters…sorry.

A/N: Okay, I was looking over my story _Christmas Memories_ and wondered, "I wonder what birthdays as a child would be like for the Straw Hat Pirates." And this is what I came up with. I pick one birthday for the One Piece characters and I make up what happens. In this chapter, I know that Luffy ate the Devil Fruit when he was seven, but I just said that he ate it at six. R/R if you want, but no flaming please.

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Over the many years people have been living, they claimed that the best season for being born in was Spring. The weather was almost always warm, not hot but not cold. This was especially good for anyone born in May. The weather was almost always good in May especially in Fuschia Village. This was a good thing for a certain little boy living in this small village.

Six-year-old Monkey D. Luffy was the lucky little boy born in the month of May, the fifth of the month actually and he really couldn't wait. The small boy was so sick and tired of being six and called a little boy despite the fact that he really was a little boy. But maybe, just maybe, he would be old enough to prove to Shanks that he was old enough to join his pirate crew.

The day was getting closer and closer and by each passing day, the small boy grew overly anxious. He was getting closer to being a whole year older and, like every normal child in the world, he just couldn't wait. His parents and brother asked him what he wanted for his birthday(his mother was praying that he'd choose something that wouldn't destroy the house) and he gave his list, which pretty much included toys and meat, to them.

Luffy's family members shrugged their shoulders. At least the things he wanted were easy to get and not a dog like his mother had feared.

After a minute, Luffy left the house and headed for the bar in the middle of town. Once inside, the small boy took a seat next to a partially sober Shanks.

"Hey, Anchor. What are you so happy about?" Shanks asked loudly.

"I'm going to be a man soon!" The boys shouted with a very large smile on his face.

Shanks stared at him long and hard, "You're going to be a man soon?" Luffy nodded. "And how are you going to do that?" The man asked.

Makino leaned forward from behind the bar and whispered in his ear, "Luffy's going to be turning seven in a week."

Shanks paled, "Oh crap. And last week we told him that when he gets a year older he'll be a man." Shanks turned his gaze at the small boy sitting next to him with a hopeful look in his eyes.

"See? When I become a man, you'll have to let me join your crew." Luffy shouted.

Shanks let out a sigh. He had promised the kid that when he got a year older he'd be counted as a man, but he never promised to let the boy join his crew. It just wasn't going to happen, but then an idea popped into his head.

"Okay, I'll tell you what, Anchor. I'm going to give you an early birthday presant." Shanks told the small boy.

"You're going to let me join your crew?" Luffy cried out hopefully.

Shanks let out a deep laugh, "Keep dreaming, Anchor." He looked over at Luffy, who was beginning to pout. The man stopped laughing, "No, but I'm going to give you what my dad gave me on my seventh birthday."

"What's that?" Luffy asked him.

Shanks smiled at him, "On your birthday, I will let you ask me _any_ questions you want to know, no matter how stupid or embarrassing they are, and I will answer them truthfully."

"You said it was an early birthday presant." Luffy told him angrily.

Shanks nodded, "It is. You have one week to think of all the questions you want to ask me on your birthday."

Luffy's angry face then turned into an excited face, "Wow! Really?"

Shanks nodded, "Really."

"Cool!" Luffy shouted, "Thanks!" the small boy quickly ran out of the bar happily.

"You're going to tell him the truth about anything he asks you?" Makino asked him.

Shanks gave out a huge laugh, "Hell no!" Everybody in the bar laughed with him.

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For the rest of the week, Luffy thought long and hard of all the questions he would be able to ask Shanks that he couldn't ask his own parents. After four days, he realized why Shanks gave him a whole week to think of the questions he would ask the day he turned seven. Most of the questions he asked were already answered by either his parents to by Ace, but there were also some questions they wouldn't answer. Now all he had to do was wait.

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The sun rose on the morning of May 5th and almost immediately, Luffy jumped out of bed and ran to the living room. Ace and his parents were already up and ready for the excited little boy that just ran into the kitchen. Saying a "Happy Birthday" to her youngest son, Luffy's mother placed a huge plate full of eggs and meat.

Quickly, the small boy sat at the table and started eating the food on the plate. His family sat down at the table to eat breakfast with him. After breakfast, Luffy as allowed to open up two of his presants: one from his parents and one from Ace, and open up the others later after dinner. His parents gave him this really cool miniature car. Ace gave him an envelope with a coupon inside.

Luffy looked over the coupon in confusion. It was made by Ace himself, but still Luffy didn't quite understand it.

"Let me see that." Luffy's mother told him.

Luffy handed her the coupon. She looked it over and began to read, "**Good for one free butt-kicking. Expires: Never**." She looked at her elder child, "Ace!" Ace was cracking up and so was his father.

"Dad made me do it!" Ace admitted, pointing at his father.

His father stared at him, "Tattletale. Besides, it was a good joke."

"You don't give a seven-year-old a handmade coupon for a butt-kicking. You're going to get him scared and possibly even give Ace ideas." Luffy's mother argued.

"I'm going to the pirates!" Luffy announced.

"Be back in time for dinner!" his mother called.

"Okay!" Luffy shouted before leaving the house.

The second he left the house, Luffy ran to the bar to find Shanks and his crew completely sober.

"Happy birthday, Luffy!" Makino said to the small boy that had entered the bar.

"Yeah, happy birthday." Shanks said to him. Luffy smiled at both Makino and Shanks and took a seat next to the pirate. "So, do you have your questions ready?" Shanks asked him. Luffy nodded happily. Shanks laughed, "Then ask away."

"My mom said that storks bring babies, so is that true?" Luffy asked.

Shanks shook his head, "God no!"

"Well, then where do babies come from?" Luffy asked.

Shanks took a deep breath, "I guess now you're old enough to know the truth."

Makino stared at him, ready to step in if the man told the small boy the absolute truth, but…

"When a couple or person wants a baby, they take some money and head to the nearest auction house. You know what that is, right?" Shanks asked him.

Luffy nodded, "Dad took me and Ace to one last year."

"Good. Didn't want to confuse you. Now, when they get to the house, they wait for the auction to start then they auction for special eggs that give them the chance to have a baby.

The auction is held every few days and only six eggs are auctioned and are only sold to one couple or person." Shanks told him.

"What happens next?" Luffy asked, already believing the story he was being told.

"They wait for the auction house to empty and they crack their eggs. If there isn't anything there, then they don't get anything, but if there is a little yellow ball inside, then they get a baby. If there are two, then they get twins." Shanks answered.

"So, do the balls turn into babies?" Luffy asked.

Shanks shook his head, "No. The women with the balls feed them to a special flying animal, which flies to an island full of babies. Then they deliver the babies."

"Storks?" Luffy asked.

Shanks roughly shook his head, "Those damn storks try to take all the credit for delivery. No, the babies are delivered by flying cats with huge fangs. If a baby touches the cat's fangs, then they will be bad."

"Wow…" Luffy gasped. He closed his eyes trying to imagine his parents auctioning for an egg and cracking it to get a baby. He also tried to imagine being traveled to Fuschia Village by a flying cat.

"Do you have any other questions?" Shanks asked him.

Luffy nodded, "Why do brussel sprouts taste so gross?"

Shanks let out a laugh, "You don't know how long I've asked my own dad that question before I found the answer out myself."

"So, what's the answer?" Luffy asked him.

Shanks leaned forward and whispered the answer into the small boy's ear.

"Really?" Luffy asked. Shanks nodded his head. "EEEEEEWWWWWWW!" Luffy shouted.

"See? Now you know why they taste so bad. I hate them too, so I don't eat them." Shanks told him.

"Did you ever tell that to any of your kids?" Luffy asked.

"I don't have any kids." Shanks answered, grinning.

"Well, what about Yasopp? He said he had a son." Luffy asked.

"Beats me." Shanks answered.

"Right. You think I'd be telling him that? The only thing I'd be telling him are the stories of my life of piracy." Yasopp laughed from his table.

"Shanks? Why does everyone freak when they see two people holding hands?" Luffy asked the red haired pirate.

"Well, that's because when two people hold hands it means that the boy will never be left alone by the girl. Trust me. I held hands with a girl when I was ten and she didn't leave me alone until I left home…and I think she'll never stop looking for me." Shanks answered shuddering.

"What about thunder? Where does it come from?" Luffy asked.

Shanks smiled, "When the good fat people walk around heaven, thunder is made. That's why it's so loud."

"Wow…why are girls so obsessed with the color pink and men aren't." Luffy asked. He'd been wondering that for years.

"Easy," Shanks answered, "It's because we're men and pink is the color of weaklings. Men are tough while the women are weak-OW!"

Makino hit him over the head, "What was that?"

"Nothing." Shanks quickly answered. Makino grinned and began pouring ale into mugs.

"I thought you said that girls were weak." Luffy told him.

"Well, Makino's an exception." Shanks told Luffy, placing a hand on the part of his head that Makino hit. A bump was starting to form.

"Do you think you can answer my questions still?" Luffy asked.

Shanks nodded, "Yeah. Luckily she didn't hit me very hard."

"Okay, so why do I hear my voice repeated when I scream down the well?" Luffy asked.

"Your twin is stuck down the well." Shanks answered.

"I have a twin?" Luffy cried out.

Shanks nodded, "He was thrown down there because he was the evil twin."

"I have an evil twin?" Luffy asked.

Shanks nodded, "Everyone has an evil twin. Just not all of them were thrown down the well."

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Luffy asked Shanks questions for hours and found out that rain is only caused when somebody memorable to the world dies, make-up is just a way for girls to possess boys, it took 512 licks to get to the Tootsie Roll center of a Tootsie Pop (Shanks wasn't lying on this one. He actually counted before he entered Fuschia Village), and many other things he never knew before.

Ace finally came into the bar to bring his brother home for dinner, cake, and more presants. Luffy thanked Shanks for all the answers to his questions not knowing that most of the things he was told were complete lies. Both boys walked out of the bar and Shanks laughed about kids believing anything.

A rubbery foot ran through the doors and roughly kicked Shanks in the back.

"Sorry, Luffy." Shanks shouted at the foot before muttering, "Damn Devil Fruit." Everybody in the bar laughed at him. Makino poured him a mug of alcohol and laughed after seeing him chug the entire thing down in half a second.

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As Luffy and Ace walked home, they ran into the nine-year-old Zedaker twins Harry and Kerry. Luffy stopped and stared at them long and hard.

"What are you looking at?" Harry asked Luffy.

"Which one of you is the evil twin? I can't tell." Luffy asked.

"Evil twin?" Kerry asked.

"Yeah, which one is the evil twin?" Luffy asked.

"None of us is evil!" Harry and Kerry shouted.

"You are, too. There is always an evil twin!" Luffy shouted.

"There is not!" the twins argued.

Ace grabbed Luffy's hand, "Come on. Mom wants us home now." The two brothers left for their home and left the twins staring in shock.

When the boys got home, plates of dinner was placed in front of them. The man and boys ate a lot. Luffy's mother ate only a little bit. A nice chocolate cake was then placed in front of the younger boy with seven candles lit by Ace in them. The special birthday song was sung for Luffy; he made a wish, and then blew out the candles.

Two more presants were placed in front of the small boy: one from his parents and one from Ace. Both were toys and no homemade coupons. Luffy smiled and thanked everyone for their presants and claimed that this was the best birthday he ever had and to him it really was. For the first time ever, he had his questions answered and was about to go to bed happily. But then he saw his mother eating a few brussel sprouts and screamed, "MOM! STOP! Brussel sprouts are grown out of chicken poop!" Hey, to him it was the truth.

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A/N: Okay, that was the first chapter. I know that everybody seemed OOC, but it's my story and I can make them as OOC as I want. And I know that the thing with Luffy asking where babies come from was already done in another story, so just to make it clear that I didn't steal that idea, I just made the answer to the question different than the other person's. And the thing with Ace's coupons. That was based on something I did to my little sister. On her eleventh birthday, I decided to make her homemade coupons for humor and one of them said, "**Good for one free ass whooping. Expires: Never**" and my dad was the one that gave me the idea. My mom yelled at me, but I didn't get in trouble.

Sorry if I made this chapter a little weird and boring, but I'll try harder on the next chapter.

Next chapter: Zoro


	2. Zoro: Lost in the Woods

Ch.2- Zoro: Lost in the Woods

Disclaimer- One Piece isn't mine…yeah…

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SWING! BLOCK! SWING! PAIN! Ten-year-old Zoro fell to the ground after Kuina beat him again.

"The winner…Kuina! That makes 845 for Kuina…0 for Zoro." Kuina's father, Sensei as everyone else called him, announced.

"Dammit!" Zoro growled, standing up on wobbly feet, "How could you beat me again?"

Kuina snorted, "You're not strong. That's why."

"He is strong!" One of Zoro's friends shouted.

"Yeah! He's even stronger than all the adults here!" Another friend agreed.

"Really?" Kuina asked, "Well, he's not stronger than me."

Zoro's friends growled in frustration. Kuina ignored them and walked out of the dojo. Zoro stared in her direction even after she was completely out of his sight. Zoro then walked off to the well outside to wash his face with cold water.

"Don't worry, Zoro. You'll have better luck on the next match." A voice said from behind Zoro.

Zoro quickly turned his head and saw his sensei standing behind him with a smile on his face. "I don't get it, Sensei. No matter how hard I train, I can't ever beat her! She was sick last month with a cold and she still beat me." Zoro complained.

"Zoro, she is a few years older than you." Sensei told him.

"That's not the point!" Zoro shouted, "I train really hard and she's still better than me!"

Sensei let out a calming sigh, "Give it some time, Zoro. Someday, your training will pay off and you just may be able to defeat Kuina."

Zoro wasn't buying it. "I just don't think it's fair, Sensei. It really hurts to be defeated repeatedly by a girl." Zoro argued.

"Just give it some time, Zoro." Sensei told him.

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Zoro's next match against Kuina was scheduled to be on November 7th, four days before his eleventh birthday. He had trained even harder until he was stronger and completely ready to fight Kuina. His confidence was much higher, but in the end…

"The winner: Kuina. That makes 846 for Kuina, 0 for Zoro." Sensei announced. Zoro had lost to her again.

After the match, Zoro walked off to the nearby stream, but instead of washing his face in the cool water, he took a walk down it to clear his head of the anger he had of the earlier match with Kuina. He walked for hours, or about three miles, until he made it to a river and decided to take a little rest on a raft by a tree. Zoro laid his body on the raft and quickly fell asleep. As he slept, a heavy wave splashed onto the bank, carried the raft into the river, and began carrying it downstream while Zoro slept.

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Zoro woke up hours later when the raft had gotten caught on a rock and couldn't float downstream anymore. Zoro looked around with a confused look on his face, "Where am I?" Quickly, he hopped onto the left side of the bank and kept looking around, "Where's the dojo? I don't even recognize this place at all." He kept looking around, "Isn't anybody going to help me?" He asked to no one in particular.

A bright light shone suddenly and a girl about his age with long curly golden hair, bright green eyes, a long white robe, and angel wings stood before him. "Hello, Zoro." The girl said sweetly.

"Oh no. It's Angel 1…uh…uh…" Zoro started.

The girl sighed, "It's 1189…and just call me Ari."

"Okay, Ari. What are you doing here?" Zoro asked.

"I'm here to help you find your way back to the dojo." Ari answered.

"What happened to your other outfit? You looked so cool in it." Zoro asked.

Ari shrugged, "It's a rule to look cute for the ones we're guarding…unless they want us to look like something else."

"Are you my Guardian Angel?" Zoro asked her. Ari nodded. "Then I want you to look like your original self." Zoro told her.

Ari smiled, "Done." She snapped her fingers and her hair, eyes, and clothes were changed and the wings were gone.

Ari ran a hand though her short lavender hair and patted her baby blue shirt and jeans. She tapped her black shoes together and stared at Zoro with her blue-brown lightening bolt eyes.

"That's better." Zoro told her.

Ari giggled, "Good. Now it's time for you to be getting back to the dojo. But be warned, you can choose to head back without my guidance, but the trip will be much harder for you. You could get lost, you could starve, you could be found months or even years from now dead."

"What about if I chose to take your guidance? Then what will happen?" Zoro asked.

"The trip will be much easier. You will be back at the dojo in a few days and you can take all the credit for coming back to the dojo." Ari told him.

"What about you?" Zoro asked.

"Oh, God will know what I did and give me credit for my work." Ari answered.

"I'll do it. Guide me, Ari!" Zoro exclaimed.

Ari's smile became wider, "Follow me, Zoro." She began leading him up a steep, rocky hill. When the two were halfway up, Zoro began to sweat heavily, "I…I don't think I can do this…"

"What the Hell are you talking about? We've only been walking for an hour! Come on, let's go!" Ari shouted.

"I…can't…" Zoro panted.

Ari sighed, "Oh, for God's sake."

Ari flew up to the top of the hill and snapped her fingers. Suddenly, instead of Ari being up there, it was Kuina.

Kuina was smiling and holding out her right hand. In her left hand was her wooden sword.

Zoro suddenly had a large boost of energy and began walking up to the top. He was about to grab Kuina's hand when it was suddenly changed to Ari's.

"Hey! What the hell?" Zoro shouted.

Ari giggled, "I knew that would get you motivated. Now let's go!"

Zoro grumbled but obeyed Ari and followed her down a rugged path. After five hours, his feet began to ache. "Hey, Ari! I thought you were my Guardian Angel!" Zoro shouted.

"I am." Ari answered.

"Well, why are you making me walk so long? My feet hurt." Zoro asked.

"Oh come on, Zoro. Quit whining and, as my father used to say to my brother, be a man." Ari told him. She looked up at the sky, "Well, we might as well stop now. It's already passed sunset."

Zoro instantly sat down on a nearby log and let out a breath of relief while Ari, with the snap of her fingers, made a campfire. Zoro smiled at the warmth of the campfire, but then looked around confused, "Where's the food?"

"Hey, you can't expect angels to do everything for you. As my father used to tell my brother 'You don't work, you don't eat.'" Ari told him.

"What did your father use to say to you?" Zoro asked.

"Baby Girl, you're more of a man than your brother is." Ari answered with a giggle at the remembrance of her father's words.

Zoro grumbled and gathered up some nearby edible plants for dinner. After dinner, he fell asleep in front of the roaring fire.

_**DAY TWO**_

The next day wasn't quite as difficult as the first day. There weren't any hills this day, but the distance was almost a bit too much for Zoro because he didn't have the discipline that Ari's brother had since he had been disciplined to be a man since he was seven-years-old according to Ari, while Zoro's discipline had started at ten.

Ari had again changed into Kuina to get Zoro motivated, but instead of her holding her wooden sword, this fake Kuina was holding out her hand and smiling.

Zoro called out her name, but she refused to say anything until Kuina was changed back into Ari. Zoro was a little bit frustrated at Ari for the rest of the night. If she was going to be Kuina, then she could at least speak to make him feel better.

Ari noticed his frustration. _Hmmm…now it's time to try something new._

_**DAY THREE**_

The third day was rainy, so the trail was wet and muddy and much more difficult. It was especially difficult with the mud up to his knees and his feet getting stuck quite often. Just as Zoro thought, another Kuina appeared when he was getting tired, but there was something different about this one. She looked like Kuina, but instead of having normal black hair, this one had a few green strands mixed with the black.

The girl held out her hand and smiled at him. At first Zoro didn't know what to do, but then got the message and found the strength inside his body and mind to follow the girl. He wasn't at all surprised when the girl turned out to be Ari, but he still had the same amount of annoyance as he had before.

By nightfall, Zoro's body was extremely numb, so Ari made the campfire much bigger than she had for the past few days.

"As my father used to say 'the bigger the man, the bigger the fire must be'." Ari told him.

Zoro wasn't exactly sure what Ari meant, but he was too cold and tired to ask her.

_**DAY FOUR**_

The trail was still a bit muddy on the fourth day, the day before his eleventh birthday. There was a steep hill he had to climb up and he did it without Ari's help. There was one obstacle he had to cross that required Ari's help. Zoro saw a rope bridge that led to the opposite bank, the side with the dojo, but Ari commanded him to ignore the bridge and walk passed it.

The weather was windy and the bridge rocked, but Zoro wasn't afraid.

"Zoro! Stop!" Ari shouted.

"Forget it!" Zoro shouted back.

"That bridge is a death trap!" Ari screamed.

Zoro looked straight ahead. The bridge was hanging by rotting ropes that looked as if they would break at any moment and send whatever was on the bridge crashing to their death, so he decided to listen to Ari and follow that one path. There was a steep hill that went downwards when you turned right at the end of the path, but he managed to get down by himself without Ari.

There was a steep hill on the way up. This one was the steepest hill he had ever seen before, but he attempted to climb it. Zoro was only halfway up when he began to feel exhausted and started to slide back to the bottom. The black and green haired girl stood at the top of the hill, beckoning him to come up.

Her beckoning didn't motivate Zoro, but the next thing she did, definitely motivated him. "Come on, Otou-sama!" the girl called.

Zoro stared at the girl in shock. _Otou-sama?_

"Otou-sama! Come on! If I can make it up here, then so can you!" The girl called.

Suddenly, Zoro found the strength to make it up to the top. "Ari, what the Hell was that? Why did that girl call me 'Otou-sama'?" Zoro shouted as soon as the girl disappeared.

Ari shrugged, "You'll find out later in your life. Besides, it motivated you, didn't it?" She placed a campfire in front of both her and Zoro. The two of them sat under the night sky for a few moments.

"Hey, how did you know that the bridge was a death trap?" Zoro asked.

Ari didn't take her eyes off the fire, "Let's just say that when you die someplace, you never forget it."

Zoro noticed her sadness and decided to get off the subject, "You mentioned your brother a lot. Was he older or younger than you?"

"Older." Ari answered.

"By how much?" Zoro asked her.

"One minute." Ari told him.

"Twins?"

"Triplets. Mum died giving birth to my dead little brother."

"Oh. Sorry."

"Don't worry about it. Worry about tomorrow. You'll be eleven tomorrow and you'll love it."

"Because I'll be a year older?"

"Not just that. You get more challenges that'll really help you be a man."

"Since tomorrow's my birthday, are you going to get me a presant?"

"Yup!"

"It's not a kiss, is it?"

Ari punched him.

"Ouch! Dammit, Ari! That hurt!"

"Good! And you just wait! You'll get your presant later."

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A few hours later, Ari turned to Zoro, "Okay, it's midnight. Time for your birthday presant: a story that may help you in your life if you listen very carefully and get the point. Do you want to hear it?" Zoro nodded. Ari took a deep breath and began:

_There was once a traveling merchant who lived with his young son and daughter. The merchant's wife passed away giving birth to a still-born baby boy and all the merchant had left was his two children. The merchant was a strict man, but also very funny and worked really hard to teach both of them right from wrong. He always wanted his children to be merchants like him, but knew that it required not only smarts, which both already had, but courage._

_He wanted his son to be a real man so called the son his Little Man, but his daughter, or his Baby Girl, was becoming a man instead of the little lady the merchant wanted her to be. Little Man was only a minute older than Baby Girl and was determined to be a merchant, which made his father proud, while his sister wanted to be an adventurer._

_Little Man was always losing to thing at Baby Girl…except for when it involved determination. He had more of that than even his own father. One day, Little Man and his family took a break in a forest with some of the merchant's workers. Little Man and Baby Girl were enjoying a game of tag when Little Man noticed that they were too far away from the others and commanded that both of them go back. Baby Girl refused and called him a wimp._

_Little Man and Baby Girl began fighting for the first time ever. Little Man stomped off to camp, screaming that he didn't care what happened to Baby Girl. Baby Girl stomped off in the opposite direction and noticed an old bridge. She stepped onto the bridge and was only one fourth of the way across when a heavy gust of wind spun the bridge around and sent Baby Girl screaming and hurling to the ground._

_All the merchants heard her scream and ran to the bridge, but couldn't find her. They searched around the bridge for four hours until the merchant believed that she'd come back on her own, but Little Man was determined on finding his sister, dead or alive, and convinced his father to keep looking. When they found her, a board from the bridge was laying next to her. Baby Girl was killed when she fell from the bridge._

_The merchant was upset for the loss of his only daughter while his son was upset for the loss of not only his little sister, but also his best friend. Years passed and with his determination, Little Man joined his father as a merchant and grew up as a true man. He was always upset up about what happened to his beloved sister, but with his determination, he was able to get what he wanted in life._

"Do you get the point of the story?" Ari asked Zoro. Zoro shook his head. "Zoro, if you are determined on getting something, no matter how bad things may get, you can find ways to get what you want. Just never give up. That's what my brother did." Ari explained.

Zoro nodded his head. He finally understood Ari's story.

_**DAY FIVE**_

The final day of traveling was the easiest. There were only normal roads and the dojo wasn't very far away. Zoro stepped behind a tree and noticed the dojo right in front of him.

Ari placed a hand on his shoulder, "Zoro. Happy Birthday. Remember to enjoy being eleven and don't die young. Being eleven is great, but it sucks if you die at eleven because you have to spend eternity at that age."

Zoro nodded, "Okay, I won't."

Ari smiled, gave him a quick hug, then flew up to into the sky. Zoro walked back to the dojo.

"Hey, it's Zoro! Zoro's back!" A student outside screamed. In an instant, practically everyone in the dojo ran outside asking Zoro if he was okay and giving out a "Happy Birthday" when they found him alright. In fact, to prove that he was fine, Zoro challenged Kuina to a fight. She accepted and the fight began.

"The winner…Kuina. That's 847 for Kuina, 0 for Zoro." Sensei announced as soon as the fight was over.

Everybody around Zoro was disappointed, but he wasn't. She didn't let him win and both tried their hardest…plus after that she gave him a birthday presant…a real sword of his own. For the rest of the night, he thought about how badly he wanted to beat Kuina and remembered what Ari told him. "I am determined to beat her and one day, I will." Zoro told himself. And deep down in his body, he really believed it.

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A/N: Okay, that was chapter 2. Just to make a few things clear, I don't know how old Zoro was when Kuina died and I don't buy that crap the dubbers tried to pull when they said that she hurt herself so badly that she couldn't fight anymore, I mean come on. What the hell is up with that!

Ari is from my story _Christmas Memories_. And the girl I mentioned in this story, the black and green haired girl…I made her up and after this story, I WILL make a story that explains who she is. R/R if you want, but if you wanna flame: keep 'em to yourself.

Next Chapter: Nami


	3. Nami: The Almost Perfect Birthday

Ch.3- Nami: The Almost Perfect Birthday

Disclaimer- I don't own One Piece.

A/N: Hey, I know it's been a LONG time since I've updated, but since the last chapter I went into a HUGE Resident Evil craze. I got the remake of the first game and Resident Evil: Zero for Christmas, then I got Code Veronica X and Resident Evil 2 for my birthday in March, then I got Resident Evil 3 in June and I've been playing them almost non-stop. But I finally updated and I promise that I will try to finish this story soon.

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There is no such thing as a perfect birthday. All the adults in Cocoyashi Village knew that. They knew that you cold plan your special day and everything would be there, but one tiny thing would go wrong like the cake tasting weird or a fight between party guests could erupt. It always happened. The children of Cocoyashi, however, didn't know it or if they did, they didn't believe it.

The very warm late June/early July weather was absolutely perfect for a few of the people of the village to have birthday they assumed would be perfect. Unfortunately…

Three-year-old Nami sat alone on her porch sulking. She was completely bored. Belmeil was buys and her five-yaer-old sister was laying in bed with a high fever and red spots all over her body. Belmeil called it "Chicken Pox" and had stated that it was going around the village. Almost all the kids in Cocoyashi had it. Belmeil had been spending countless hours taking care of Nojiko and making her younger daughter promise to stay out of trouble.

The poor little girl was bored. She didn't really have any friends in the village and had to rely on her big sister to play with her, but now her sister was sick…and Nami wasn't even allowed to see her. Belmeil wouldn't allow her to see Nojiko and she really hated it. She especially hated it when her birthday was coming up and her sister may have to spend it in bed with itchy spots covering her body.

"Nami? Are you out here?" A young woman's voice called form the doorway of the small house.

"Hai, Belmeil-san!" Nami called from her spot on the porch.

The red-haired woman walked out of the house and took a seat next to the little girl. "What's wrong?" Belmeil asked after noticing the upset look on her youngest child's face.

"I'm bored. Ever since Nojiko got sick, I haven't had anyone to play with." Nami grumbled.

Belmeil let out a light sigh and took a puff from her cigarette, but said nothing. She knew what she wanted to say, but unfortunately didn't know how to say it. After a minute, the woman placed a hand on the little girl's head and half smiled, "Don't worry. She'll be fine."

"Really?" Nami asked, her eyes widening with hope.

Belmeil nodded her head, "She'll be okay in about a week." Nami smiled back at her mother.

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Nami spent practically the entire day the next day in town. Since she was only three years old, Belmeil never allowed her to go walking around town without either Nojiko or herself. But since Nojiko was still sick, Belmeil spent most of her time taking care of her so she never even noticed that Nami was gone. She just thought that Nami was outside on the porch or playing in the farm.

A few of the townschildren were playing outside in the hot sun. The townschildren were laughing joyfully, running around playing a game of tag, inviting any of the other children to join in on the game. Everyone, that is, except for Nami. None of the other children ever asked Nojiko and Nami to join in on their games. Not even the other farm girls wanted to play with them.

It never bothered Nami that none of them wanted to play with her. It happened all the time, ever since she could remember anyting. Besides, she always had Nojiko to play with even though they were two years apart and Nojiko was currently stuck in bed. No, what really bothered her was when the other kids had birthdays. Everyone had a birthday. She was old enough to understand that, but what she hated was the talks the other kids had about the parties they were going to have.

Nami never thought it was fair. All the children on Cocoyashi Island were always talking about the large parties they were going to have, complete with multiple layered cakes, games, friends, and mountains of presants…the perfect birthday. She never got any of those. Parties were useless since only three people would be around to eat the cake(if she got one) so it'd have to be a small single layer, nobody would be around to play the games, none of the other kids wanted to be Nami or Nojiko's friends(except for one child), and the presants, though thoughtful, were nothing like the other girls' presants. That's just how it was.

The sisters had a friend once. Her name was Amamiya Ayame and she was a year older than Nami and a year younger than Nojiko. Ayame had moved to Cocoyashi about a year ago when her parents opened up an inn. She had been a good friend to Nojiko and Nami for about seven months before she made friends with a bunch of snobby townschildren and turned against Nojiko and Nami.

As Nami walked through the town, she passed by Ayame. Her long pink hair was tied back with a red headband, a very delicate china doll was in her arms, and she was laughing with a few of the townschildren. She was also loudly bragging about the large birthday party she was going to have the next day. She was smirking at Nami the entire time, placing a bit of jealous anger inside the three-year-old.

'How could she change so fast?' Nami wondered, walking passed Ayame with her eyes looking at the ground.

"Nami!" A loud voice shouted from in front of her.

Nami lifted her head and looked at the person in front of her, "Gen-san…" Her voice wasn't much louder than a whisper.

"What are you doing out here alone?" Gen asked in a softer voice, kneeling down to the little girl's height. Nami didn't say anything at first, but then answered, "I went for a walk."

"Where's Belmeil?" Gen asked her. Nami didn't answer him. Letting out a heavy sigh, the man picked the little girl off the ground by the back of her dress and walked back to the orange farm with Nami screaming at him to put her down and Ayame smirking at her the entire time she was in town. After walking for about ten minutes, Gen and Nami made it to the orange farm. Gen walked up to the front door and knocked just loud enough for Belmeil to hear him, but not loud enough to wake up Nojiko if she was sleeping.

The door opened and a tired Belmeil stood in the doorway, "What is it?"

Gen placed Nami onto the ground and answered, "I saw her wandering alone in town and brought her back."

"Was she stealing again?" Belmeil asked.

Gen paused then again kneeled down to Nami's height and asked, "Did you steal anything?" Nami shook her head. Gen went back to his normal height and walked back inside the village.

Belmeil looked down at Nami with a tired frown. "You know you aren't supposed to go into town by yourself." She told her younger daughter.

Nami sadly nodded her head, "I know, Belmeil-san. But I was really bored. I miss being able to play with Nojiko."

Belmeil sighed and led Nami into the living room and onto the couch. Then, with a smile pasted on her face, she answered, "Well, don't worry. Your sister is doing a lot better today. You'll be able to play outside with her in a few days."

Nami's eyes lit up, "Really?" That really was great news to her. Both hers and Nojiko's birthdays were going to be in four days and Nojiko wouldn't be stuck in bed with red spots all over her body.

Belmeil nodded her head, "She'll be okay in a few days. Now, go out side and play, but don't go into town yet." Nami nodded and ran out of the house.

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Nami went to visit Nojiko later on that night when Belmeil wasn't around. There were a few more spots left on the older girl's face, but not as many as there were on the first day. She was also not scratching her body as much. In fact, in the two hours Nami visited with her, Nojiko only scratched once and didn't complain.

Nami broke the good news to her sister during the time she visited. Both Nojiko and Nami were so excited about what Belmeil had said about Nojiko being well before their birthday that they nearly started cheering, but decided against it to avoid awakening their mother, who decided to take a short nap.

After both girls were finished whispering and giggling, Nami snuck out of the room to her own before she could get caught by Belmeil. Before she left the room, Nami made a promise to her sister to come and visit the next day when Belmeil wasn't around.

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Three days passed and Nojiko was no longer ill and was able to play games with her little sister. Nami, unfortunately, was not able to play outside like she wanted. It was the first of July when Nojiko was completely well. That morning, both Belmeil and Nojiko noticed that Nami had been moving around much slower than she had for the past few days.

"Nami, are you okay?" Nojiko asked her younger sister. Nami didn't say anything and turned her head towards the ground.

Belmeil softly placed a hand on the small girl's forehead and felt the heat from the forehead on her own hand. The woman removed her hand and said two words to her younger daughter, "Bed. Now." Nami obeyed her and made it to her bed and fell asleep.

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When Nami woke up, she noticed that her head was feeling hot while her body was feeling extremely itchy. The small girl opened her eyes and saw the red spots that once plagued her sister now all over her own body. She reached her right hand over to her left arm to scratch it, but a different hand grabbed her own and prevented her from doing so.

Nami turned her head towards the one that grabbed her hand, "Belmeil-san?"

"Don't scratch, Nami." Belmeil commanded while rubbing some orange smelling lotion on the little red spots covering Nami's body.

In an instant, Nami's small body started to feel slightly better even though she still itched. "Why do I itch so badly?" Nami asked, attempting not to scratch the spots.

"Chicken Pox do that to you." Belmeil answered, placing a cool cloth on Nami's small head, "Especially when you visit your sister that has it."

Nami gulped, "You knew about that?"

Belmeil smirked, "I do now. So, why did you see Nojiko when I told you not to?"

Nami looked down at her lap, "I don't know. I was bored."

"Well, now you see why I told you to stay away form your sister, don't you?" Belmeil asked her little daughter.

Nami softly nodded, "Hai, Belmeil-san."

"Good. Now go to sleep." Belmeil said, smiling a little and patting Nami on the head before leaving the room.

"Belmeil-san?" Nami called.

Belmeil stopped, "What is it?"

"Will I be okay by my birthday?" Nami asked.

Belmeil shook her head, "You'll be sick for almost two weeks."

"That's not fair! My birthday's in two days!" Nami shouted.

Belmeil sighed, "Well, that's what being sick does to you."

"Being sick sucks." Nami grumbled.

Belmeil stared at her, "Watch your mouth and go to sleep."

"Hai, Belmeil-san." Nami muttered, leaning back into her bed and falling asleep.

Nami woke up hours later to the sound of another visitor. "Nojiko? What are you doing in here?" she asked the visitor.

Nojiko smiled and answered, "I came to see you."

"But you'll get sick, too." Nami protested.

Nojiko shook her small head, "No, I won't. Belmeil-san said that you only catch the Chicken Pox once, so I'm okay to visit you." Nami sulked at what her sister told her. Nojiko then attempted to cheer Nami up, "Cheer up, Nami. Our birthday is in two days."

"But I have to spend it stuck in bed with the stupid Chicken Pox." Nami grumbled.

Nojiko made a few more attempts to cheer up her angry little sister, but was unsuccessful. Then she had an idea that would only work on the third of the month.

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Nami's fever was still around two days later and her pox had gotten worse. Her body was itching so badly that the lotion Belmeil rubbed on her arms and legs was hardly soothing her skin and what made it feel worse was the face that it was Nami's birthday and she'd have to spend it in bed while her sister got to run around and play.

Belmeil and Nojiko popped into the room to wish her a happy birthday, but it didn't cheer her up.

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When the evening came, the door to the small girl's bedroom opened and both Belmeil and Nojiko walked in smiling. Belme4il held two plates of pancakes while Nojiko held two small boxes.

Nojiko placed the boxes at the end of Nami's bed and sat down next to her sister.

Belmeil placed a plate in front of each girl and lit the candle in the middle of the pancakes, "Make a wish, girls."

Nami and Nojiko closed their eyes, made a wish, and blew out their candles. They looked at each other and began eating.

Belmeil handed each girl a box, which they immediately opened at smiled at.

Inside each box was a smooth shell with rainbow colors on the inside. Nojiko's was a bit bigger than Nami's, but it didn't matter. These beautiful shells made Nami feel like she was holding a presant that once belonged to the gods of the earth and made her realize that she had an almost perfect birthday.

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A/N: Okay, that was chapter 3. Sorry if this was a sucky chapter, but I'll try to make the next chapter more interesting. R/R if you want, but don't flame me, please.

Next chapter: Usopp


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